Nineteen teachers are heading back to their classrooms knowing Berrien Community Foundation is helping fund their special projects through Golden Acorn Classroom Mini Grants.
Adding a new skeleton to the classroom, athletic equipment for recess and maple syrup tree-tapping kits are just a few of the projects and supplies teachers sought funding for in the latest cycle of the Golden Acorn Classroom Mini Grants at Berrien Community Foundation. This grant opportunity — which is offered twice per year — awards up to $500 to teachers across Berrien County to help fund special projects in their classrooms.
Countryside Academy FARE class instructor Kathy Hollacher, who teaches classes on food and nutrition, plans to teach her students a “sweet lesson” with the help of a BCF Classroom Mini Grant.
“My plan is for us to tap the maple trees in front of the school and teach students about how maple syrup is made and why trees give us sap,” Hollacher said. “I really appreciate receiving this grant because it gives me an opportunity to expand what I already teach on.”
Tapping maple trees is a first for Hollacher and her students, who will help install spiles into the trees, cook the sap, and make delicious syrup and candy in the spring.
“Teachers can be so creative and make learning engaging for our students,” said Berrien Community Foundation President Lisa Cripps-Downey. “Through the Golden Acorn Classroom Mini Grants, we give teachers a hand in affording fun, educational projects for their students without them having to dig into their own pockets.”
Other winners of a Golden Acorn Classroom Mini Grant are:
· Lisa Callahan, Hollywood Elementary School – Library Collection for Reading Workshop
· Andrea Countess, Bridgman High School – Choice Reading Program
· Amy Deloria, Hollywood Elementary School – SNAIL (Science Nature And Integrated Literacy) Studies
· Holly Duthler, Hollywood Elementary School – The Birdy Friend Project
· Elizabeth Gregorich, Roosevelt Elementary School – Get Your Sensory On!
· Paula Hazzard-Reed, Hollywood Elementary School – SEL Supplies
· Kathy Hollacher, Countryside Academy – Sweet Spring
· Kaitlin Hooper, Lakeshore Middle School – ELA 7 Class Library
· Megan Kohler, Merritt Elementary School – Sports for Kids
· Charli Moray, Buchanan High School – Continuing Literacy in a Second Language
· Eric Munyon, Buchanan High School – FVR Library
· Wendy Skinner, Brandywine Elementary School – STEM
· Tori Thomas, Buchanan High School – AP Statistics Curriculum Enhancement
· Emily Zablocki-Kohler, Brandywine Middle/High School – We’ve Got The Bones!
Applications for the next round of Golden Acorn Classroom Mini Grants are due February 15, 2023. For more information, visit www.berriencommunity.org/gaclassroom.
